Financial literacy is a lesson that everyone should learn but few are fortunate enough to be taught. Being financially aware allows people to make better decisions with their money, like where it goes, how much to save, and how much to invest. To be financially unaware can be detrimental to people and hold them down economically. I have seen the detrimental effects of being financially unaware in my own family, and I have been fortunate enough to been able to take a financial management class in high school. The best lesson I learned in this class was about loans. As the class was mostly seniors, my teacher emphasized the importance of understanding student loans. We spent many lessons talking about the FAFSA and what we would need for it when the time to complete it. My teacher also spent the school year emphasizing the importance of scholarships. We spent a week making our own scholarship application spreadsheets and she instructed us on the best way to search for them. These lessons stuck with me the most because I understand the importance of fighting off massive amounts of debt. I understand that with debt comes hardships and the feeling of being unable to stay on your feet. And so, with these lessons in mind, I spend my time searching for scholarships to help reduce the amount of student loans I need to take out. I want to pursue my dreams in accounting and entrepreneurship, but I also understand the expenses that come with that. In order to reduce my own debt for school, I work hard to pay off my loans as quickly as I can. Debt can feel like a mounting, unpredictable thing that stands in the way of people and their dreams but it doesn’t have to be.

Growing up I never knew what I wanted to do with my life. It wasn’t until I took an accounting course my senior year in high school that I had even the smallest sense of direction to take. Even though I liked my accounting class I went on to community college undecided in my major. This past year however I’ve re-stepped into the business and accounting world and can now confidently declare that this is where I would like to be. Right now, I’m going to school for a general business education at my local community college. The next fall semester I am planning to transfer to a four-year college where I will major in accounting and hopefully minor in entrepreneurship. I’ve already started my four-year college plans, having been accepted into Oakland University, and am currently going through all the steps I need to get my class credits transferred. Assuming I make it to Oakland, I plan on talking with advisors to figure out the best course of action. In the future I would like to open my own bookstore. I plan on doing this by working as an accountant for some time to save up money so I may invest in this dream business. I envision this bookstore as a safe space for all types of people. I would like to feature a large selection of inclusive works from POC and LGBTQ+ authors. I would also like to have a small section in my bookstore where people may use computers to search and fill out job applications. I’d like to encourage other businesses around me to leave job postings on bulletin boards in my shop so people searching for work can have easy access. Ultimately, I would like to create a community space that uplifts others.